Man Demands Colleagues Use His 'Offensive' Name

A man's name sounds offensive, but he demands to be called by it regardless. While this makes his colleagues uncomfortable, the man insists on being called his name.

Today's story is about a man who works for an international company where they are assigned to teams consisting of people from different nationalities.

Though the man lives in Germany, he was recently assigned to a team consisting of mainly Americans meaning he has to work at odd hours due to time zones.

However, being a single guy with no kids, the man noted that he does not mind working weird hours. The man explained that being a German, he spoke German with everyone but used English in writing.

During some of their virtual meetings, the man noticed that some of his American colleagues were pronouncing his name wrong. Instead of pronouncing it, "Mr Bič," they called him "Mr Birch," and the man tried to correct them.

"Mr Bič" is pronounced just like an offensive word, but the man's American colleagues felt awkward about calling him by his surname because of how it sounds. However, using first names was not normal.

After some of their meetings, the man received a call from the Human Resource department of the company in respect to his name. He told them that he didn't see an issue with his name.

Apparently, his American colleagues requested for a different representative because they feel uncomfortable calling his name that sounds like a curse word in front of their families.

However, due to the time zone difference, it became difficult to find a replacement because nobody was willing to work between 2 am-7 am at home. Because there was no replacement, the management asked the man to accept being called "Mr Birch," and this left him slightly offended.

One of the man's co-workers suggested that he file grounds for discrimination complaint, but the man feels bad for refusing to answer to a different name.

The man would have preferred to be called by his first name but using first names is not in the company's policy due to different cultural customs. Additionally, using surnames is considered more professional.

After sharing the story, Reddit users took to the comments section to share their thoughts and comments about the situation.

One user who seemed to think the man was right to want to be addressed by his correct name wrote, "That is most definitely a discrimination complaint." At the same time, another added, "Americans are far too sensitive about words. It's your name."

Many other users also left their opinions, with many showing approvals with the man's decision and some asking him to make a compromise.

Click here to read another similar story about a teenager who decides to start calling his grandmother by the wrong name until she gets his own name right.